As we celebrate National Farmers Market Week, Greenup County Farmers Market shines as an example of how a small gathering of growers in 2004 has grown into a thriving market under a new pavilion—building community, supporting small businesses, and expanding food access with KCARD’s support.
In honor of National Farmers Market Week, we’re sharing how Community Farmers Market in Bowling Green grew from six vendors in a parking lot to a thriving, year-round local food hub. Read how their partnership with KCARD has helped fuel their success and helped make fresh, local food more accessible for everyone.
Pricing your flowers right is key to running a thriving cut flower business. Whether you're selling at a farm stand or designing for weddings, understanding your costs and setting strategic prices ensures your hard work pays off. Learn how to build profitable bouquet recipes, price for different markets, and boost your bottom line with smart add-ons!
Need a Clear Plan for Growth? KCARD Can Help.
A strategic plan is more than a vision—it’s your roadmap for success. Whether you're a farm business, food enterprise, nonprofit, or cooperative, KCARD can guide you through the strategic planning process, from clarifying your goals to crafting an action-ready plan. Our team offers expert facilitation, data-driven insights, and tools tailored to your organization’s needs. Ready to plan your future with purpose? Contact KCARD to get started.
Not sure how to structure your farm or ag business? Choosing the right business structure can impact everything from taxes to liability to transition planning. In this blog post, we break down common business structures—like sole proprietorships, partnerships, LLCs, and corporations—and what they mean for agricultural operations. Read the full post and view our quick reference guide to help you decide what’s right for your farm.
“What do I need for a commercial kitchen?” is a question we often hear at KCARD. Typically, the answer is not a simple one as several factors play into what will be needed for a commercial kitchen to be a useful and efficient endeavor. In this post, we’ve included some of the first steps we discuss with those interested in a commercial kitchen and resources to learn more.
While KCARD is able to provide a variety of services to clients, our staff spends a large percentage of time working with clients on business plans. Here are a few questions with one of our Business Development Specialists, Kellie Padgett.
There’s no denying that the world is different than it was before COVID-19. One demonstration of this is the reality that people often don’t carry cash, even when they’re heading shopping or to a farmer’s market. With this in mind, it’s important to consider offering different payment methods (most of which can be contactless). Check out these options for accepting alternative payment methods that don’t require hardware or a full POS system.
Digital marketing can be intimidating, with a lot of moving parts that you must manage and lot of options for tools to use that can be expensive. Check out this list for ideas for cheap (or free!) tools to help grow your digital marketing efforts!
Farmers' markets can be a great way for producers of all sizes to create/expand their customer base and have a consistent marketing opportunity. If you're considering selling at a farmers' market for the first time (or sell at a market already), check out these tips for successfully selling at farmers' markets!
Farmers and business owners often don’t pay themselves a consistent wage/salary for a number of reasons, although they are contributing a lot of sweat equity to the business. Check out this post to learn more about how and why you should consider paying yourself as the owner of the business.
One direct-to-consumer marketing arrangement that has increased in popularity in the past several years is Community Supported Agriculture (CSA). While this can be a great model for many farm businesses, it’s important to evaluate the pros and cons to understand if starting a CSA is right for your farm business.
Getting a loan to purchase a farm, or an operating loan, can seem like a challenging task. Farmers often have questions about what information they’ll need to have to successfully obtain a loan, how long the process will take, and more. Check out these tips on ways to prepare for getting a farm loan.
At KCARD, we understand how intimidating starting a business plan for the first time can be. Whether you’re starting a new business or creating/updating a plan for an existing business, there can be a lot of questions about the process of writing a business plan. While we do believe all information in the business plan is useful, there are three elements that we often encourage businesses to research further and expand upon.
The beginning of a new year is often spent reflecting on the past year and planning for what is to come. We often make New Year’s resolutions to form new habits focused on our health and wellness; here are six habits that focus on improving the health and wellness of your business.
The Kentucky Center for Agriculture and Rural Development is a non-profit organization established to facilitate agricultural and rural businesses in Kentucky. We are supported primarily through grants provided by the USDA Rural Cooperative Development Program and the Kentucky Agricultural Development Board. Additional support is provided through our work with partners around the state and through fees charged for select client services.
